On our wedding night, my wife acted strangely.

"My son!"

The night in the Ninth Prince's mansion was torn apart by a mournful wail, and the birds resting in the trees fluttered about in panic.

The one who let out that scream was none other than Empress Zhao Shuyu of the Great Zhou Dynasty.

At this moment, the smell of blood in Nangong Ao's palace was so strong it was pungent, and the maids and eunuchs had to endure the nausea to serve him.

Several imperial physicians knelt on the ground, not daring to even raise their heads.

Zhao Shuyu sat on the edge of the bed, on the verge of collapse.

The golden hair ornament on her head swayed back and forth with her vigorous movements, and a few strands of her black hair fell down, sticking to her tear-streaked cheeks.

To be fair, Zhao Shuyu was an extremely beautiful woman.

Although she is over forty, she is very well-maintained, with fair and firm skin and a voluptuous and graceful figure, exuding the unique charm of a mature woman.

Normally she was high and mighty, not even deigning to look at those lowly concubines, but now she was like a shrew from the marketplace, crying and screaming without any regard for her image.

Because lying on the bed was her son, Nangong Ao, whom she had been so proud of for many years.

At this moment, Nangong Ao's eyes were closed, and his face was deathly pale, devoid of any color.

His right hand was wrapped in white gauze, and a white cloth was also covering his legs, with a large patch of shocking dark red blood seeping out from the center.

Seeing her son in such a miserable state, Zhao Shuyu felt so heartbroken that she could hardly breathe. She turned her head sharply and stared at the imperial physician kneeling at the front.

"Imperial Physician Wang! Tell me, how is Ao'er? Can his hand be healed? And down there... how badly is his injury?!"

Cold sweat dripped down the forehead of Physician Wang.

"Your Majesty, His Highness's right hand was pierced by a sharp weapon, severing all the tendons and shattering the bones. This old minister has already applied the best wound medicine, but this hand... I'm afraid it will be difficult for him to even hold chopsticks in the future."

Zhao Shuyu's vision went black.

My right hand is useless.

My son is known for his bravery. If his right hand is crippled, how will he lead troops into battle? How will he establish authority in the army?

But that's not the worst part.

"Then what's next! Tell me the truth! What exactly happened next!"

Physician Wang was so frightened that he kowtowed repeatedly.

"Your Majesty, spare him! His Highness suffered an extremely severe blow; his body is completely shattered and necrotic. This old minister is incompetent... but this old minister truly did his best!"

"So... from now on, Aww..."

"That's right, Your Highness will no longer be able to engage in sexual relations, nor will you be able to have children!"

boom!

These words struck Zhao Shuyu like a bolt from the blue, causing her to collapse onto the carpet.

The chief eunuch rushed forward to help her, but she slapped him away.

"Get out! All of you, get out!"

"My son! Waaah..."

Zhao Shuyu's heart was bleeding.

When the fourth brother, Nangong Jin, was deposed, she pretended to care on the surface, but she was actually overjoyed inside.

Because that little bastard, relying on the emperor's favor, has been keeping Ao'er in check all these years.

Later, he was deposed and made a eunuch, losing his right to inherit the throne. Zhao Shuyu finally saw hope and felt that her son had finally made it through!

Once Ao'er ascends the throne as emperor, she will be the rightful empress dowager, able to move into Cining Palace, control the harem, and even have a say in the court.

She will kill all those despicable people who used to look down on her and oppose her.

She had dreamed of becoming an empress dowager for over twenty years.

But now, that dream has been shattered by Fatty Wang!

The ancestral precepts of the Great Zhou Dynasty clearly state that a person with a physical disability must never inherit the throne!

Ao'er isn't even a man anymore, so what makes her think she can fight for the throne?

He's completely out of the game!

"Lin Yi! Wang Chongyu! You damned beasts! Ah!!!" Zhao Shuyu cursed through gritted teeth, her hands gripping the carpet so tightly that her nails split.

She hates it!

Lin Yi not only cut off Nangong Ao's manhood, but also extinguished all of Zhao Shuyu's hopes for the rest of her life.

She had painstakingly planned for so many years, fighting tooth and nail in the harem, and finally outlasted all her rivals, only to have Lin Yi overturn her plans at the last moment.

"Your Majesty, please take care of your health," the personal maid knelt beside her and whispered.

"Take care my ass!" Zhao Shuyu's eyes were so fierce they looked like she wanted to devour someone. "My son is a cripple, how am I supposed to maintain my position in the harem? Those vile women will laugh their heads off! Lin Yi is trying to cut off our chance of survival!"

The more she thought about it, the angrier and more desperate she became, wishing she could just die with her son right now!

What's the point of living? There's no hope at all!

Just then, a eunuch's shrill voice came from outside the door to announce something.

"His Majesty has arrived!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Nangong Xiong strode into the palace with a gloomy face.

He was still wearing a bright yellow bathrobe, clearly having rushed over as soon as he received the news.

Following behind him was Sun Fu, the chief steward of the inner court, who also wore a solemn expression.

As soon as Nangong Xiong entered the room, the strong smell of blood hit him right in the head, making him frown involuntarily.

When Zhao Shuyu saw him, she clung to him like a lifeline, scrambling over and grabbing onto Nangong Xiong's leg.

"Your Majesty! You must do justice for Ao'er! Waaah..." Zhao Shuyu cried with snot and tears streaming down her face. Her carefully applied makeup was now a mess, making her look utterly miserable.

Nangong Xiong glanced down at her without saying a word, then turned his gaze to Nangong Ao on the bed.

When he saw Nangong Ao's hands, which looked like rice dumplings, and the blood-soaked white cloth between his legs, his pupils suddenly contracted, and the muscles in his cheeks twitched violently.

"What exactly happened?"

Physician Wang quickly crawled forward on his knees and repeated exactly what he had just said to Zhao Shuyu.

After hearing the imperial physician's report, Nangong Xiong closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and then suddenly opened them, his eyes revealing undisguised murderous intent.

The fourth brother is finished, and now the eldest brother is finished too!

My two most prized sons were both ruined by Lin Yi!

"Lin Yi..."

In fact, Nangong Xiong has always been a very patient person.

In order to regain military power and reduce the power of the princes, he could act subservient, tolerate Lin Yi's blockade of the capital, and even endure the lack of food and vegetables in the palace, where he could only drink millet porridge.

He had been waiting, waiting for the local troops to enter Beijing, waiting for an opportunity to kill Lin Yi in one fell swoop.

But Lin Yi doesn't play by the rules at all!

Not only did he steal his money and his tribute, but now he's openly targeting the prince!

If Nangong Jin being crippled by a dog was an accident, then Nangong Ao is now crippled as well.

What is this?

This is a declaration of war!

This is a blatant slap in the face!

Lin Yi was telling the whole world that he didn't take the Great Zhou royal family seriously at all.

He can depose whichever prince he wants!

He can humiliate the Nangong family however he wants!

"Your Majesty! Please speak!" Zhao Shuyu cried out anxiously, shaking Nangong Xiong's leg as he remained silent. "Ao'er is your eldest son! He's always been the most filial and loyal to you, expanding the territory of the Great Zhou! Now that bastard Lin Yi has harmed him like this, how can he ever face anyone again! Your Majesty... you must kill Lin Yi and avenge Ao'er!"

Zhao Shuyu didn't care how many soldiers Lin Yi had, nor did she care whether the capital was under blockade. All she knew was that if Lin Yi didn't die, she would never be able to swallow this insult for the rest of her life.

Nangong Xiong looked coldly at Zhao Shuyu, feeling a surge of irritation.

Didn't he want to kill Lin Yi?

Do not!

He dreamed of tearing Lin Yi to pieces!

However, Lin Yi held the Shenji Battalion in his hands and also controlled the military seal of 300,000 troops in the Northern Territory.

He controlled all twelve city gates of the capital.

Even so, Nangong Xiong knew he couldn't wait any longer.

This grudge must be avenged today!

Because if word got out that the eldest prince had been deposed and made a eunuch, and the emperor didn't dare to utter a word, then the prestige of the royal family would be completely destroyed.

What will ordinary people think?

What will those powerful families and local officials who are still watching think?

They would think that the Nangong family was completely finished, unable to even protect their own son, so how could they protect the world?

At that time, everyone will side with Lin Yi.

The Great Zhou Dynasty will truly be renamed Lin.

Nangong Xiong would never allow such a thing to happen.

Imperial power was the thing he valued most in his life.

He would fight to the death with anyone who dared to challenge his imperial power!